Primoz Roglic has seen and done almost everything in his illustrious professional cycling career, with one notable exception: the Tour de France. The closest he came was in 2020 when Tadej Pogacar dramatically snatched the Maillot Jaune from him during the final time trial.
“I was there to win and finish, so it was tough when I lost,” reflects the Slovenian, three years after the disappointment, in a conversation with Davide Cassani, a journalist from Gazzetta dello Sport, Nino Morici, to the American website Cyclingnews. “But looking back, I have to be happy because afterward, I won many things,” Roglic adds.
What could have been a definitive victory for Roglic turned into a bitter example of disappointment. “Maybe I could have won the Tour, but perhaps I wouldn’t have won everything I did, so the 2020 Tour really gave me a lot.”
Primoz Roglic, after winning the Giro d’Italia, mentioned that he knows what’s missing from his palmares. He expressed a clear desire for a chance at victory and not to race alongside riders like Vingegaard or anyone else.
“I don’t want to say that the Tour is an obsession,” Roglic said in Trento, trying to avoid any obsession with the Tour de France.
“I’ve won a lot, and even if I stopped right away, I’m very proud of what I’ve achieved and what has happened. But it’s my responsibility to move forward, try to do everything to win, not to regret, and be proud of what happens,” the Slovenian concluded.